Re: Why emacs have not native language menu

[Giorgos Keramidas]

On Thu, 26 Jul 2007 10:56:36 -0400, Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org> wrote:
>> Newsgroups: gnu.emacs.help
>> From: Giorgos Keramidas <keramida@ceid.upatras.gr>
>> Date: Thu, 26 Jul 2007 00:56:14 +0300
>>
>> If you describe in an ISO 8859-7 Greek manual that
>> the following are equivalent:
>>
>>     M-x find-file RET διαδρομή RET
>>     μενού: Αρχείο | Άνοιγμα ...
>>
>> which are the localized versions, then it's not as easy to
>> remember that the `random' name `find-file' maps easily to the
>> Greek text for "Open..." :-(
>
> If those hypothetical Greek users understand and remember find-file
> _today_, when it is described in a purely English manual, they won't
> have a harder time when the explanations are in Greek.  Just like a
> Greek book talking about `typedef' in C or `defun' in Lisp will be
> easier for them to read than an English book.

True.  What I mean is that for an English-speaking reader, the
explanation of `defun' can be ``define function'', and the
English-speaking user will appreciate the `de'-fine `fun'-ction mnemonic
rule, and will even enjoy the wordplay: `define' <=> `defun'.

That's impossible for a Greek user who reads a Greek translation of the
manual.  Losing some of the fun of reading an English version of the
manual does _not_ invalidate the reasons why people choose to translate
English documentation, though.  This is _exactly_ why I am part of the
team which translates FreeBSD documentation to Greek, after all :-)

- Giorgos